Shuttle Discovery

Dulles, VA — The space shuttle Discovery sits atop a NASA 747 carrier aircraft landing after the final time of space shuttle Discovery at Dulles International Airport.  Discovery flew aboard a modified jumbo jet to Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, April 17, 2012 where the shuttle will be put on permanent display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.

Discovery completed 39 missions, spent 365 days in space, orbited the Earth 5,830 times, and traveled 148,221,675 miles. NASA will transfer Discovery to the National Air and Space Museum to begin its new mission to commemorate past achievements in space and to educate and inspire future generations of explorers

Shanksville Flight 93 Memorial

President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama walked alone in the open expanse of field now a sacred memorial honoring those who died when Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, PA on September 11, 2001.

Seeing the President holding the hand of his wife among the wildflowers and tall grass now covering what was scarred earth ten years earlier was a moving and emotional image.

However, something seemed oddly wrong.

In fact, seeing the couple walking completely in the open and by themselves was something I have never witnessed. There was not a hint of secret service agents or members of the tight press pool both of which are always just feet away when the President is in public. Even White House photographer Pete Souza only crept into view from the woods as the couple made their way back from the field.

Of course there were unseen agents and other security measures in and around the tree lines of the large open field and the park was already a very secure area as visitors passed through security to visit the Flight 93 National Memorial for earlier 9/11 anniversary ceremonies.

Nearly everyone who was walking the path leading to the memorial exit looked back over the field at the memorial marker were also quite shocked to see two people, the President and the first lady, alone standing a respectable distance from the boulder marking the exact point of impact of Flight 93. The passengers of Flight 93 are all truly American heroes and seeing the President and the first lady honoring them and their families in this way was truly an inspiring moment.

Twenty Hour Wedding Dash

Sunday was the first day for legal same-sex marriages in New York, making New York the largest state where gay and lesbian couples are now able to wed. My assignment was to follow Drew Glick and Alan Miles on their wedding day. They had received a lottery spot for a wedding at the New York City Clerk’s Office on the first day of legal same-sex marriages in New York.

Alan Miles and Drew Glick, both 45 years old, have been a couple for 16 years, live together in the Chelsea neighborhood of NYC with their boxer named Chip. Alan works for Nielsen Media Research and Drew is a real estate broker in New York City. Alan proposed to Drew when Massachusetts passed same-sex marriage in 2004. Drew said yes but not until they could be married in New York, his home state.

I touched base with Alan and Drew a few days before their wedding and we talked about documenting their day from the time they got up to the time they were wed. They were more than gracious and told me I could show up at their place at 5:30AM on Sunday morning.

I jumped on the 10:15PM train from Union Station in Washington, D.C. to New York City Penn Station arriving in New York City around 4AM. Getting off the train was a bit of a shock. The first thing that hit me besides the oppressive heat wave blasting the east coast was the sight and sound of hundreds of previous late night club kids all passed out on the floor of the Long Island Rail Road waiting area early on Sunday morning. All were waiting for the first trains out of New York City.

Lucky enough, Drew and Alan were only a short walk from Penn Station. It was super hot still in the early morning hours but the walk delivered me to their apartment just as the sun was coming up. I got to start the day documenting the two as they started on their way to the City Clerk’s office with a few close friends for their special and historic day.

With nearly 700 lottery winners planning on weddings at the city clerk’s office, there was no way of knowing just how quick or long of a wait it was going to be on Sunday. As it turned out, Drew and Alan were in a very organized line in front of the City Clerk’s Office by 7AM and allowed into the building at 8:30AM. Waited for their number to be called just like waiting at the DMV for your drivers license and finally married before 10:30AM.

It was really remarkable getting to tag along with Drew and Alan and their friends while getting to document the day. Drew and Alan and their friends were great and the atmosphere downtown around the City Clerk’s office was pretty moving.

I had an early afternoon deadline to make so I hustled back to Penn Station. Lucky for me, I was able to get on the noon train back to D.C.

After settling down into my seat and plugging in, I edited and transmitted on the way back to Washington on board Amtrak 157. Even with a corrupted disk needing to have images rescued, I was finished editing and shipping somewhere between Philadelphia and Baltimore.

Pulling into Union Station, I realized I had just finished a twenty hour D.C and back marathon.

State of the Union

President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address to Congress with me shooting (below middle) from the House Press Gallery. Very tight and not much room to maneuver but as usual, things work out just fine.

Crazy tidbit of the night, while walking over from Union Station to The Capitol, I somehow managed to lose my sport jacket somewhere along the way. It was a very comfortable blue blazer that is way out of today’s style but it was something I have been wearing since my senior year in college. I just kept it in the trunk of the car and pulled it out when needed. After some 25 years, I finally got my money’s worth out of that jacket and probably shouldn’t complain. I am sure it is in a better place today.

Tidbit #2 from the night, Senator John McCain really enjoyed this photo when it showed up in the paper the next day and actually called looking to get copies of the photo for himself and to send to what he called his “prom dates” for the night.